“Shopping While Black”
CNBC Focusing on Retail Racial Profiling

'As Black buying power grows, racial profiling by retailers
remains persistent problem'

For more than two decades, Black Americans have been most likely to report unfair treatment while shopping, according to a Gallup poll.

Industry watchers and activists say that racial profiling remains persistent and retailers must do more to examine how they treat and cater to Black customers.

The killing of George Floyd, which began with a retailer’s 911 call, has inspired protests and a push for police reform. It’s prompted a closer look at the everyday places where Black Americans face discrimination — not only in interactions with police, but at the workplace, grocery stores and shopping malls.

For more than two decades, Gallup has surveyed Black Americans about the places where they’ve faced discrimination. In each of the polls since 1997, Blacks have been most likely to report unfair treatment while shopping. 

The experience is so widely shared that Black Americans and academics have a term for it: “Shopping while Black.”

Cassi Pittman Claytor, an assistant professor of sociology at Case Western Reserve University, studies contemporary forms of discrimination with a focus on middle-class Blacks.

She said salespeople, store security guards — and even company policies — can reinforce inaccurate stereotypes that Black customers are more likely to steal or can’t afford high-end items.

“It doesn’t matter how much money you have, what your credentials are,” she said. “Your prestigious credentials don’t garner you any additional respect. When you walk into a store, you could still be treated like a criminal.”

Boyd, the professor and administrator at University of New Haven, said the coronavirus pandemic has exacerbated challenges for Black and minority shoppers, particularly young Black men. Some retailers already viewed them with suspicion, he said. Now, he said, they may face even more racial bias as they walk into a store wearing a mask. 

Code names and locked shelves

In the past few weeks, some retailers’ business practices have sparked backlash and policy changes.

Article originally published on cnbc.com